Royal Delta leads Ladies' Classic from start to finish

10:44 PM,
Nov. 2, 2012

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This is why owner Benjamin Leon paid $8.5 million to buy Royal Delta last fall, days after she won the $2 mil­lion Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic at Churchill Downs.

This time, however, the 4-year-old filly - a stalker in her previous races - went gate to glory, setting a stern pace throughout the 11/8-mile race that capped the sun-soaked Breeders' Cup Championship Friday card at Santa Anita Park. With the previously unbeaten champion My Miss Aurelia and Include Me Out dogging her into the stretch, Royal Delta edged away in the final furlong to beat My Miss Aurelia by 1½ lengths, with Include Me ...